


Patient

by Snelly_ESQ



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Medical Themes, NOT Hunted AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-19 04:48:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29620851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snelly_ESQ/pseuds/Snelly_ESQ
Summary: Joyride have made it to Schnee Manor. But just as Ren thought he'd be getting some rest, he has to help care for Nora. What will he learn from this? And does Nora still love him, after all of this?
Relationships: Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie
Comments: 4
Kudos: 41





	Patient

**Author's Note:**

> This work is NOT part of my ongoing Hunted AU. It takes place during Volume 8.

_ “Then I turn her to wash her back _

_ Talking to her about what seems to matter _

_ In this life-though I make no promises.” _

_ -Laura Gilpin, ‘The Bath’ _

“I’ll warn you, she’s not in good shape.” 

The words rebounded off of the inside of Ren’s skull. He never thought it could be  _ this  _ bad. “How long was she out?” 

“It’s better if you don’t think about it, Ren, it-”

“At least a week or something.” Nora interrupted Weiss as she was lifted from bed by the both of them. “Long enough that I can’t walk yet.” 

Nora was...a bit rough as far as movement went. Electrocuting yourself can do that to a person, apparently. She was awake, and talking, but she was having trouble with feeling in certain parts. One was her right arm. It was number than the left, but it was generally something she could move with a bit of effort. That, and it had been getting better over time. She was confident it’d come back. 

Her legs were less certain  _ time  _ wise. But she was confident she could walk with them. But being in bed so long, with nerve damage, and possible brain damage, it can do a number on one’s ability to walk. She was gonna have to re learn that. They were lucky that Klein had connections, and that Ironwood had pissed off enough doctors so badly that they would heal an enemy of his just for the chance she’d get him.

Ren knew this wasn’t standard, though. Most sponge baths he’d heard of happened  _ in  _ bed, but Klein and Weiss insisted. ‘The bathroom on that level is marvelous!’ they’d argued, ‘it’s much better than that dreary bedroom, and we know we can move her without paralyzing her. It’s only right she bathes in a bathroom!’ And thus, the bath became a team lift event. And here they were. 

“Right.” Ren and Weiss had dressed themselves in casual clothes, short sleeved shirts and sweatpants, with flip flops on. They put Nora in a chair. Weiss wheeled her to a bathroom on the floor. 

In it was a wash basin. 

“Y’know, this isn’t what I had in mind for ‘first bath with Ren’.” Nora said, smiling gently. Her voice was meak; she’d been training it back into health. But it was hard. Weiss and Ren lifted her up. 

“It’s not what I had in mind either.” 

“Nora?” Weiss asked. “Are you comfortable with a man bathing you?” 

“I’m not really comfortable either way.” Nora said. “The water is nice though.” 

“Do you want Ren to bathe you, or just me?” Weiss asked again. Nora nodded. 

“Ren ought to bathe me.” She said. “I love him.” 

Ren started as Klein had taught him. Nora could wash her front just fine. And she could sort of do her legs. Everything else though, was gonna have to be Ren. 

He sighed a bit as he worked. Weiss was there to help lift her. Nora looked at the wall. 

“When I woke up, I didn’t know where I was.” 

“Huh?” 

“I thought I’d died. Or something similar, I think.” She moved slowly, and talked quietly. Her voice could barely be heard over the sloshing water in the basin. “I couldn’t remember anything that I was told. It took me 20 tries to get Weiss’ name right.” 

“Nora, I’m sorry to hear that,” He saw petals, quite a few. A lot, actually, a frightening amount. He just tried to be calm. “Are you getting better with memory?” 

“I am, yeah.” Nora said. He finished with her back, and proceeded to her under arms and sides, which had orange-ish marks all over them. She looked down at herself. “I’ve got a lot of it back...some of it is hazy.” She said. “I still have trouble reading.” She chuckled. “Despite my best efforts, the dyslexia didn’t get zapped.” Ren smiled a bit, and helped her with the spaces below her knees, sighing a bit. 

“Ren?”

“Nora?”

“If…” She shook her head. “If we grow old together, and...and I have something crazy like dementia…” 

“I’ll take care of you as well as I can.” He said, kissing the top of her head. “I love you, I mean that.” 

Nora was too weak to react in any excited way. “I love you too.” She leaned into him. 

The bath went on, and eventually, they moved to dry her off, wrapping her in towels. “Now that the bandages are off,” Weiss said, “It’s been better to dress her.” Weiss smiled. “She seems to fit into some stuff I had when I was younger. Do you need help with that?” 

“Should be fine.” Ren said. “I’ll take care of her, you just focus on the mission.” 

“Thanks, Ren.” Weiss hugged him. “I know you’re a task oriented person, but...I think she needs someone, and you’re a good candidate.” She walked back to the rest of the team. 

Ren sat by Nora’s bed. Nora had fallen asleep. When you’re  _ that  _ injured, it seems everything, even being bathed by someone else, is a strenuous activity. 

* * *

When Nora woke up, Ren was walking into the room. He had food with him. Nora couldn’t quite tell what it was. It smelled like some sort of stir fried poultry. She was just getting back onto solids. She smiled a bit and leaned over to eat from the plate when it came to the nightstand. Ren was still wearing that ‘please don’t do anything to the cook’ apron. How he still  _ had  _ that thing, she had no clue. 

“Hey, Nora.” He smiled. He so rarely smiled...and yet, since she’d seen him again, he was all smiles and affection. She carefully sipped the water from the glass next to her food. 

“Hi, Ren.” She returned a meager smile, and sat back, looking up. “I’m sorry about this.” She said. 

“What’re you talking about?” 

“If I hadn’t flown off the handle and done this, I-”

“It’s not your fault.” 

“I  _ did  _ it.” Nora said. 

“But you got yourself into a coma on accident.” Ren replied. “It wasn’t your goal to do this, was it? This wasn’t some malicious attempt to not have to do things for a while, was it?” 

“No.” She replied, a glum tone in her voice. 

“Besides, there’s nothing that I want to do more than care for you right now.” He said. 

“You’ve been very caring.” Nora ate a bit more. “And I appreciate it, but...why?” 

Ren put his hand on hers. “While I was gone, I learned to...see things.” He said. “It’s not important.” He leaned on the nightstand. “But on the way back, I just sort of realized that leaving like that, without saying anything, it was wrong.” He explained. “I felt like I may as well have been telling you I hated you.” He gripped her hand tightly. He choked up. “ANd now I see you like this, and...it’s hard to just-”

“You pressed a lot down.” She said. “I did, too. We just...pressed it down in different ways.” She moved her other arm and hand to rest on their now clutching hands. “But it’s okay. Just like I don’t have to apologize for this, you don’t have to apologize for that. It was a mistake, and I forgive you.” 

Ren just sobbed. It was a sound she’d never heard before. A feeling she’d never felt. He was in the chair, lurched over her body, and gripping her tight, just openly weeping, the blanket getting wetter and his grip getting tighter. Eventually, he stopped crying. She stroked his hair. “I’m glad you can open up like that to me, Ren.” She cupped his cheek. “It’s nice to know that, after all this time.” 

“It’s...it’s nice to  _ do  _ that.” Ren sat up. He rubbed tears from his eyes. “It’s good to be vulnerable sometimes.” 

The two sat, silently, for a while. After that, it was mostly filled with catching up; how was Oscar, what happened while I was gone, what’s this about a hound, etc. They looked at the time. 

“It’s late.”

“Are you allowed to sleep with people?” 

Nora smirked. “Geez, Ren, I didn’t know this sorta thing got yer engine runnin’, but-”

“Not  _ that  _ sort of sleep with you.” Ren said. “Just...laying down.” 

“We can’t spoon.” Nora said. “Well, at least, not towards the closet. We have to avoid nerve compression on that side.” 

“Oh.” Ren nodded, and got onto bed with her, putting his arm around her, spooning towards the night stand, and holding her around her waist. “Can you breathe like this?”

“Yes.” She said. “I can breathe.” 

“Okay.” Ren kissed the back of her neck. “I love you, Nora.” 

“I love you too.” She paused. “...oh, c’mere, gimme a real kiss!” She turned onto her back and kissed him, putting her left arm around him and letting their lips meet. Hers were chapped and dry. His weren’t. Neither seemed too put off by that. Eventually, Ren pulled away, and propped himself up with his elbow.

“I don’t mean to be melodramatic.” He said. “It’s not very... _ me _ , to be melodramatic.” He was blushing. “But...if I could go back in time, and say I loved you, every time I thought it? We would have been in love for years by now.” 

“We were in love for years  _ anyway, _ Ren.” Nora kissed his nose. “We just didn’t hold hands or anything. It was a different kind of love, but still love.” 

“I prefer this kind. For us, anyway.” Ren said. 

“I do, too.” Nora nestled into Ren as well as she could. “Get under the covers.” She cooed. 

“It’s warm. I’d have to take something off.” 

“Didn’t you bathe me this morning?” She scoffed, and he took his shirt off, getting under the covers and holding her tight. He squeezed her. 

“I’m not gonna let go.” He said. “Never.” 

“Please don’t.” She shivered. “And if...something goes wrong and I don’t wake up tomorrow, I want you to know that I love you….and that I want to be scattered somewhere nice.” 

“I’ll make sure of it, but I doubt it will come to that.” Ren felt her fall asleep, and he let off another smile, before letting his eyes close and falling asleep himself. 


End file.
